View Full Version : Can I claim my boyfriends child while the child is living with me?
dixiewasher
Dec 14, 2010, 02:58 PM
My boyfriend and I have been together since June 2010. He just went to work 3 weeks ago so I have been supporting him and his 16 year old son, full-time student, for this time. Can I claim the child as my dependent since I am providing 90% plus of his support?
ebaines
Dec 14, 2010, 03:26 PM
You may, but ONLY if the child has actually lived with you the entire year. You must have provided more than half of the child's support, and the child's own income must be less than $3650 for the year. In addition make absolutely sure that your BF is not filing a tax return, because if he is then he has the right to cliam the child as his dependent, not you. Also - you want to be sure the mother isn't going to try to claim him as her dependent either.
And in anticipation of another question you may want to ask: you would file as single, not as Head of Household.
MukatA
Dec 14, 2010, 08:19 PM
Even if you are eligible to claim the child, this does not make him head of household and you do not get EIC as the child is not your qualifying child.
AtlantaTaxExpert
Dec 15, 2010, 08:27 AM
Of course, all of this complexity is avoid if you get married by 31 December 2010.
If you are legally married on that date (or your state recognizes common law marriages), the IRS considers you married for the entire year and you can file jointly with your now-husband, claim the child, get the $1,000 Child Tax Credit and the Earned Income Credit.
caseyfk
Jan 13, 2013, 01:24 PM
I noticed my employer wasn't taking state taxes out of my check. I brought this to her attention and made out another W-4. I claimed single. My son. On the following pay day I noticed this time that there were no state or federal taxes taken out of my check. I spoke to my employer and she said the her book keeper told her that they were bing taken out! When I got my W-2 I saw that state federal was not being taken out of my check as I had feared for the last year!! Is there anything I can do?
AtlantaTaxExpert
Jan 13, 2013, 01:26 PM
For 2012, save your money so you can pay the state when you file, and hope the under-withholding penalty is not too large.
For 2013, get your employer to fix the problem.